


Not a Quitter

by The_Muses_of_Mars



Category: Outwards, Wendigo's Outwards
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-18
Updated: 2017-03-18
Packaged: 2018-10-07 00:49:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,779
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10348638
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Muses_of_Mars/pseuds/The_Muses_of_Mars
Summary: When the other Colonists discover the boss has been giving his lover special privileges, things get ugly. Stefan feels betrayed by Mark's kindness, but maybe it's all just a misunderstanding.





	

Stefan Drahos was dripping with sweat that dampened his dark bangs, weighing them down so they kept getting in his eyes. He lowered the wrench he was using just long enough to wipe his forearm across his brow to dry it off. It was hotter than he’d expected in the boiler room; even the dry heat of the desert wasn’t as bad as this sweltering sauna. But, then, if Mark hadn’t made it so apparent he was playing favorites, Max and the other Colonists wouldn’t have lodged a formal complaint—which, by Colony standards, equated to beating Mark’s lover to a bloody pulp to let their grudge be known.

Mark Koch. Just thinking about the cool indifference in his tone when Mark had called out orders for the week, the way his ice blue eyes passed over him without a hint of warmth, was enough to make Stefan’s blood boil. It wasn’t like he’d _asked_ for special favors; he’d actually been surprised when he found out that working in ammunition and assembly was considered a privileged position. But, damn it, it had been humiliating to find out he was being kept as the pampered pet of the man who was supposed to be his toy. It was demeaning, and that the entire Colony knew it just made a bad situation worse. He’d been relieved to get a more difficulty duty assignment at first, but he’d grown furious with Mark when he discovered he’d been given one of the absolute worst tasks possible. And Mark hadn’t even batted an eye, hadn’t offered any explanation or apology. He’d dismissed him like any other worker, and hadn’t visited Stefan’s room or invited him to his own since.

 _Bastard,_ Stefan thought angrily, rubbing his sore shoulder before getting back to work on the leaking pipe he’d been trying to tighten. It was the damnedest thing: he’d get it to stop leaking and then suddenly water would be gushing onto the floor or spurting in his face. He’d go to tighten the valve, and like magic, it would barely require a touch to cut the water flow. It almost seemed to be anticipating his moves, and worst of all, he could hear the way the others were snickering at him. Whispers and hisses of laughter tended to echo loudly in an large, open room filled with metal surfaces.

The water began a choppy spew, cutting in and out like someone was turning a knob on and off. Stefan admittedly didn’t have much experience as a mechanic. He recalled the way Mark had mocked his soft hands when they’d first met, and it just made him angrier. If Mark was going to banish him, he could at least have given him some proper job training or a mentor or something. This was a waste of his time and efforts.

Stefan was staring at the bizarre pattern of waterfalls when the cackling behind his back became too much to tolerate anymore. Stefan turned his head, looking past the thick braid that fell over his shoulder to see who the fuck was laughing at him. Unsurprisingly, there was Max, massive arms folded across a broad chest as the instigator in Stefan’s recent pummeling leaned against a large pipe and watched him with an amused expression. Then he saw the two men with him, twisting a valve back and forth in direct correlation to the water flowing from the pipe in front of him. Those sons of bitches had been screwing with him this whole time!

“Fuck this!” Stefan cursed under his breath. He wasn’t going to dick around down here for the rest of the week, frying in the oven as punishment for a crime he hadn’t even been aware he was committing. Especially not when his sole task right now was to be a punching bag for a bunch of assholes.

He tossed the wrench to the ground and walked out of the boiler room.

 

The air in the hallway of the aircraft carrier the Colony used as a base of operations was blessedly cool, at least compared to downstairs in the boiler room, and Stefan paused for just a moment to catch his breath and enjoy it before he headed back to his room.

He stripped off his clothes the instant he was behind his own closed door, then crossed the small space to the shower stall that stood in the corner of the open area. The rooms here were like jail cells, but he imagined most of the Outers living in the Colony had seen worse. At least he had a little space of his own, and it was private enough that no one would see the furrowed brows marking his frustration.

Stefan untied his braid as the cold water rained down on him. Heat might be better for his tired muscles, but he couldn’t stand it right now. The strain of trying senselessly for half an hour to tighten the same pipe again and again had left him with a painfully stiff neck and a soreness he hadn’t felt in quite some time. What he needed was a good massage, but since Mark was avoiding him and everyone else seemed to hate him, he would have to take care of it himself.

He leaned into the spray and let the shower wash the sweat from his face and hair. He was quickly cooling, his nipples hardening and gooseflesh breaking out across his breasts. It felt refreshing, though, so he didn’t touch the hot water tap.

Rolling his shoulder a few painful times first, Stefan reached for his shampoo bottle. It had only been after some obnoxious comments from the other men of the Colony (about his looking “silky” and smelling “pretty”) that he had realized this gift from Mark was not a common commodity. He wished he had the balls to throw it away, but the truth was, he liked to feel and smell clean, and he couldn’t help that. So he grudgingly snapped the lid of the bottle open, poured some of the scented shampoo onto his palm, then lathered up his dark brown mane.

Once his hair was rinsed free of suds and sweat, Stefan scrubbed the rest of his body with a bar of soap. He took a little time to rub between his neck and right shoulder with his left hand, pressing his fingertips deeply into the aching muscle tissue. He closed his eyes and leaned his head to the side, his mind wandering in tantalizing directions. He wished he could stop thinking about Mark. Even in the middle of a cold shower he felt his body responding to memories that came unbidden to mind.

“Need some help with that?”

Stefan started when he heard the unexpected sound of another man’s voice. His eyes flew open and he turned his head, his brows knitting with anger when he saw Mark standing in his room.

He immediately shut off the flow of water, enraged that he was naked and vulnerable while the cocky blond stood watching him. “Don’t think you can just barge in here,” he growled.

Mark jerked his head toward the door, hands on his hips and a cigarette dangling loosely from his lips. “I knocked but I guess you didn’t hear me,” he said, talking around the smoke in his mouth. Then, noticing the ire on Stefan’s face, he added, “Sorry.”

“Get out of my way,” Stefan snarled, ripping his towel from the bar on the outer wall of the shower as he stormed out of the stall. He wrapped it around his waist as he walked over to the mini-fridge to get himself a cold beer. He tore the metal cap off with his teeth and threw it back. He’d cooled down significantly from his time in the boiler room, but he was still thirsty as hell.

Mark just watched him in silence. After a minute or two of waiting for Stefan’s cold shoulder to thaw, he finally moved over to the sink next to the toilet and threw his cigarette into it to smolder. Stefan didn’t smoke so there was no ash tray in the room; whenever they got together, it was usually in Mark’s room. But today Mark had come looking for Stefan. Why?

“I heard you walked out on the job,” Mark commented, his voice a little loud and his tone indifferent. Then he asked, “Mind telling me why?”

“Why do you think?” Stefan snapped, whirling on Mark. No, he didn’t want special favors…but he didn’t want to be disregarded completely, either. “You gave me the shittiest job inside the compound and didn’t even discuss it with me first!”

“What I _gave_ you,” Mark countered, “was the chance to prove your mettle to the others. These guys would be happy to drag you kicking and screaming back out into the desert where we found you. I was doing you a favor.”

Stefan looked away, crossing his arms. The condensation on the beer bottle was cold against his arm where he held it but his temper hadn’t cooled enough for him to notice that yet. “I’m not sure I like your definition of a ‘favor.’ It would have been nice if you’d given me a heads up.”

“Oh, so I’m supposed to give everyone advance notice of their duty assignments, huh? I should just take every single person in the Colony aside and hold their hands while I explain to them what I need them to do.” Mark’s voice was dripping with sarcasm. “Well, hell, I’ll just cancel the weekly staff meeting, then! It’ll take a month to dole out the weekly chores this way, anyhow.”

Stefan tried to fight off a grin, but Mark was being so dramatic and ridiculous it was impossible not to laugh at him. “Okay, smartass, I get it. You can shut the fuck up.” Stefan sighed, running a hair through the long, damp strands of his dark hair. “So’d you come in here to force me back on the line? Drag me back down to the boiler room?”

“No.” Mark’s expression turned serious. He walked over to Stefan and reached out for him, cupping his tattooed cheek with one hand. “I came to make sure you’re all right.” Stefan lowered his chin, but Mark raised it and met the seaglass of his eyes. “It’s not like you to quit and walk away.”

“I’m not quitting,” Stefan said without hesitation. They both knew he wasn’t talking about maintenance.

Mark stared into the other man’s determined green eyes for a moment longer, then lowered his hand. “Good,” he said softly. “Cause I have no intention of letting you go.”


End file.
